Special Collections
Newbery Award Winners
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Zlateh the Goat and Other Stories
by Isaac Bashevis Singer and Elizabeth ShubFrom two masters who need no introduction comes a handsome reprint of the classic Newbery Honor book Zlateh the Goat and Other Stories. With wit and whimsy, Maurice Sendak illustrates seven tales about the legendary village of fools, Chelm, written by Isaac Bashevis Singer. Silly, outrageous, and sometimes poignant, the stories (translated from the Yiddish) reflect the traditions, heroes, and villains of middle European folklore. The devil makes an appearance more than once, as do the ever-so-foolish yet highly revered Elders of Chelm. In "The Mixed-Up Feet and the Silly Bridegroom," four sisters wake one morning to discover that their feet have become mixed up in the bed they share. A wise Elder advises their mother to whack the bed with a big stick, thus causing each girl to grab her own feet in pain and surprise. When their feet are sorted out, he then recommends, the sisters should be married off as soon as possible, to reduce the possibility of similar mix-ups in the future. Of course, none of them count on the breathtaking stupidity of the first bridegroom. Another not-so-clever fellow stars in "The First Shlemiel." When this man's wife asks him to do three things for her, he promptly and accidentally proceeds to breach each one of his promises, resulting in a baby with a bump on his head, an escaped rooster, and an emptied pot of jam. Somehow, though, possibly because ignorance is bliss, fools always come out on top in these wonderful stories, making for terrific read-aloud, laugh-aloud fun for the entire family. (All ages) --Emilie Coulter
Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night
by Joyce SidmanCome feel the cool and shadowed breeze, come smell your way among the trees, come touch rough bark and leathered leaves: Welcome to the night. Welcome to the night, where mice stir and furry moths flutter. Where snails spiral into shells as orb spiders circle in silk. Where the roots of oak trees recover and repair from their time in the light. Where the porcupette eats delicacies-raspberry leaves!-and coos and sings. Come out to the cool, night wood, and buzz and hoot and howl-but do beware of the great horned owl-for it's wild and it's windy way out in the woods!
Newbery Medal Honor book
Upon the Head of the Goat
by Aranka SiegalNine-year-old Piri describes the bewilderment of being a Jewish child during the 1939-1944 German occupation of her hometown (then in Hungary and now in the Ukraine) and relates the ordeal of trying to survive in the ghetto.
Newbery Medal Honor book
When Shlemiel Went to Warsaw and Other Stories
by Isaac Bashevis SingerEight stories based on traditional Jewish themes from Eastern Europe including Shrewd Todie & Lyzer the Miser; Tsirtsur & Peziza; Rabbi Leib & the Witch Cunegunde; The Elders of Chelm & Genendel's Key; Shlemiel, the Businessman; Utzel & His Daughter Poverty; Menaseh's Dream; When Shlemiel went to War
Newbery Medal Honor Book
Shadow of a Bull
by Alvin Smith and Maia WojciechowskaManolo was only three when his father, the great bullfighter Juan Olivar, died. But Juan is never far from Manolo's consciousness--how could he be, with the entire town of Arcangel waiting for the day Manolo will fulfill his father's legacy?
But Manolo has a secret he dares to share with no one--he is a coward, without the love of the sport that enables a bullfighter to rise above his fear and face a raging bull. As the day when he must enter the ring approaches, Manolo finds himself questioning which requires more courage: to follow in his father's legendary footsteps or to pursue his own destiny?
Newbery Medal winner
Downright Dencey
by Caroline Dale SnedekerThis treasure of a novel is set on the island of Nantucket just before the War of 1812. Much more than a tale of whaling ships and gentle Quaker eccentricities, it is a tale of friendship-the kind most truly espoused by these 'plain' folk, with all the struggle and complexity one should expect. Dionis (Dencey) Coffyn is a mystery to her mother, Lydia, whose stern exterior hides a heart that breaks every time her husband Captain Tom goes to sea. Within a context of outward simplicity of living and inward intricacy of relationship, Dencey matures from the little girl who, in unquakerly violence of temper, throws a rock that wounds the town outcast. She becomes a young woman ready to bear her part in life with grace and courage. "Downright Dencey" is a probing portrayal of the power of love to overcome social barriers and religious strictures.
Newbery Medal Honors book
The Egypt Game
by Zilpha Keatley SnyderThe first time Melanie Ross meets April Hall, she’s not sure they have anything in common. But she soon discovers that they both love anything to do with ancient Egypt. When they stumble upon a deserted storage yard, Melanie and April decide it’s the perfect spot for the Egypt Game. Before long there are six Egyptians, and they all meet to wear costumes, hold ceremonies, and work on their secret code. Everyone thinks it’s just a game until strange things start happening. Has the Egypt Game gone too far?
Miracles on Maple Hill
by Virginia Sorensen"Warm and real . . . packed with incident, country magic, family lore, and people to remember."--The New York Times Book Review"Vivid descriptions . . . and excellent characterization mark each page of the book."--Chicago Tribune —
The Bronze Bow
by Elizabeth George SpeareThis gripping, action-packed novel tells the story of eighteen-year-old Daniel bar Jamin--a fierce, hotheaded young man bent on revenging his father's death by forcing the Romans from his land of Israel. Daniel's palpable hatred for Romans wanes only when he starts to hear the gentle lessons of the traveling carpenter, Jesus of Nazareth.
A fast-paced, suspenseful, vividly wrought tale of friendship, loyalty, the idea of home, community... and ultimately, as Jesus says to Daniel: "Can't you see, Daniel, it is hate that is the enemy? Not men. Hate does not die with killing. It only springs up a hundredfold. The only thing stronger than hate is love. "
Newbery Medal winner
The Sign of the Beaver
by Elizabeth George SpeareAlthough he faces responsibility bravely, thirteen-year-old Matt is more than a little apprehensive when his father leaves him alone to guard their new cabin in the wilderness. When a renegade white stranger steals his gun, Matt realizes he has no way to shoot game or to protect himself. When Matt meets Attean, a boy in the Beaver clan, he begins to better understand their way of life and their growing problem in adapting to the white man and the changing frontier.
Newbery Honor Book
Winner of the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction
The Witch of Blackbird Pond
by Elizabeth George SpeareSixteen-year-old Kit Tyler is marked by suspicion and disapproval from the moment she arrives on the unfamiliar shores of colonial Connecticut in 1687. Alone and desperate, she has been forced to leave her beloved home on the island of Barbados and join a family she has never met. Torn between her quest for belonging and her desire to be true to herself, Kit struggles to survive in a hostile place. Just when it seems she must give up, she finds a kindred spirit. But Kit’s friendship with Hannah Tupper, believed by the colonists to be a witch, proves more taboo than she could have imagined and ultimately forces Kit to choose between her heart and her duty.
Newbery Medal Winner
All Sail Set
by Armstrong SperryWho can love the spread of canvas and the bend of the oak and not thrill to the names of the great clippers built by Donald McKay? Great Republic, Sovereign of the Seas, Lightening, Star of the Empire, and Westward Ho these names ring from an era when the windships were the queens of the ocean and sail was king. But the most famous, the one that most securely captured the hearts and imaginations of the entire nation, was McKay's masterpiece, the Flying Cloud.
Here is the story of Enoch Thacher, a boy whose father lost his fortune at sea, who McKay takes on during the lofting, building, and rigging of the Cloud, and who finally ships out on her for her maiden, record-breaking trip around the Horn. This realistic and riveting narrative will keep even landlubbers pegged to their seats.
A Newbery Honor Book.
Call It Courage
by Armstrong SperryMaftu was afraid of the sea. It had taken his mother when he was a baby, and it seemed to him that the sea gods sought vengeance at having been cheated of Mafatu. So, though he was the son of the Great Chief of Hikueru, a race of Polynesians who worshipped courage, and he was named Stout Heart, he feared and avoided tha sea, till everyone branded him a coward. When he could no longer bear their taunts and jibes, he determined to conquer that fear or be conquered-- so he went off in his canoe, alone except for his little dog and pet albatross. A storm gave him his first challenge. Then days on a desert island found him resourceful beyond his own expectation. This is the story of how his courage grew and how he finally returned home. This is a legend. It happened many years ago, but even today the people of Hikueru sing this story and tell it over their evening fires.
Newbery Medal winner
Maniac Magee
by Jerry SpinelliJeffrey Lionel "Maniac" Magee might have lived a normal life if a freak accident hadn't made him an orphan. After living with his unhappy and uptight aunt and uncle for eight years, he decides to run--and not just run away, but run. This is where the myth of Maniac Magee begins, as he changes the lives of a racially divided small town with his amazing and legendary feats.
Newbery Medal Winner
Winner of Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Junior Award
Wringer
by Jerry SpinelliNewbery Honor Book * ALA Notable Children's Book "Deeply felt. Presents a moral question with great care and sensitivity." —The New York Times"A spellbinding story about rites of passage." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)"A realistic story with the intensity of a fable." —The Horn Book (starred review)"Thought-provoking." —School Library Journal (starred review)In Palmer LaRue's hometown of Waymer, turning ten is the biggest event of a boy's life. But for Palmer, his tenth birthday is not something to look forward to, but something to dread. Then one day, a visitor appears on his windowsill, and Palmer knows that this, more than anything else, is a sign that his time is up. Somehow, he must learn how to stop being afraid and stand up for what he believes in.Wringer is a powerful tour de force from Newbery Medal winner Jerry Spinelli.
Shabanu
by Suzanne Fisher StaplesLife is both sweet and cruel to strong-willed young Shabanu, whose home is the windswept Cholistan Desert of Pakistan. The second daughter in a family with no sons, she’s been allowed freedoms forbidden to most Muslim girls. But when a tragic encounter with a wealthy and powerful landowner ruins the marriage plans of her older sister, Shabanu is called upon to sacrifice everything she’s dreamed of. Should she do what is necessary to uphold her family’s honor—or listen to the stirrings of her own heart?
Newbery Honor Book
When You Reach Me
by Rebecca SteadWinner of the 2010 John Newbery Medal
Four mysterious letters change Miranda’s world forever.
By sixth grade, Miranda and her best friend, Sal, know how to navigate their New York City neighborhood. They know where it’s safe to go, like the local grocery store, and they know whom to avoid, like the crazy guy on the corner.
But things start to unravel. Sal gets punched by a new kid for what seems like no reason, and he shuts Miranda out of his life. The apartment key that Miranda’s mom keeps hidden for emergencies is stolen. And then Miranda finds a mysterious note scrawled on a tiny slip of paper:
I am coming to save your friend’s life, and my own.
I must ask two favors. First, you must write me a letter.
The notes keep coming, and Miranda slowly realizes that whoever is leaving them knows all about her, including things that have not even happened yet. Each message brings her closer to believing that only she can prevent a tragic death. Until the final note makes her think she’s too late.
Journey Outside
by Mary Q. SteeleThe Raft People live in darkness and travel a circular journey on an underground river. One boy finds his way out and tries to learn as much as he can to lead his people to a better Place.
Newbery Medal Honor Book.
The Perilous Road
by William O. SteeleChris Brabson hates Yankees, plain and simple. Not only are the Union troops down in Tennessee where they don't belong, but they helped themselves to all the supplies his family had saved for winter. And to add to it all, his brother joined up with the Union Army. How could he betray the south, Chris wonders.
Chris wants to prove his loyalty to the Confederate cause, any way he can. When he sees a Union wagon train cutting through the valley, he has his chance. He tells a spy where and how the Confederates can attack. But then he finds out that Jethro could be driving one of those Yankee wagons! Has he just caused the death of his own brother?
A Newbery Honor book and Jane Addams Children's Book Award Medal Winner
Abel's Island
by William SteigAbel's place in his familiar, mouse world has always been secure; he had an allowance from his mother, a comfortable home, and a lovely wife, Amanda. But one stormy August day, furious flood water carry him off and dump him on an uninhabited island. Despite his determination and stubborn resourcefulness--he tried crossing the river with boats and ropes and even on stepping-stones--Abel can't find a way to get back home.
Days, then weeks and months, pass. Slowly, his soft habits disappear as he forages for food, fashions a warm nest in a hollow log, models clay statues of his family for company, and continues to brood on the problem of how to get across the river--and home.
Abel's time on the island brings him a new understanding of the world he's separated from. Faced with the daily adventure of survival in his solitary, somewhat hostile domain, he is moved to reexamine the easy way of life he had always accepted and discovers skills and talents in himself that hold promise of a more meaningful life, if and when he should finally return to Mossville and his dear Amanda again.
Abel's Island is a 1976 New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year and Outstanding Book of the Year, and a 1977 Newbery Honor Book.
Doctor De Soto
by William Steig"Doctor De Soto, the dentist, did very good work." With the aid of his able assistant, Mrs. De Soto, he copes with the toothaches of animals large and small. His expertise is so great that his fortunate patients never feel any pain.
Since he's a mouse, Doctor De Soto refuses to treat "dangerous" animals--that is, animals who have a taste for mice. But one day a fox shows up and begs for relief from the tooth that's killing him. How can the kindhearted De Sotos turn him away? But how can they make sure that the fox doesn't give in to his baser instincts once his tooth is fixed? Those clever De Sotos will find a way.
Doctor De Soto is a 1982 New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year and Outstanding Book of the Year, a 1983 Boston Globe - Horn Book Awards Honor Book for Picture Books, and a 1983 Newbery Honor Book.
Belling the Tiger
by Mary StoltzA tale about two little mice assigned to a mission of putting a bell collar on the mean house cat.
Newbery Medal Honor Book
The Noonday Friends
by Mary StolzEleven-year-old Franny Davis and her best friend share school and family problems in this realistic, often humorous story set in New York's Greenwich Village.
1966 Newbery Honor Book
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
by Mildred D. TaylorWinner of the Newbery Medal, this remarkably moving novel has impressed the hearts and minds of millions of readers. Set in Mississippi at the height of the Depression, this is the story of one family's struggle to maintain their integrity, pride, and independence in the face of racism and social injustice. And it is also Cassie's story--Cassie Logan, an independent girl who discovers over the course of an important year why having land of their own is so crucial to the Logan family, even as she learns to draw strength from her own sense of dignity and self-respect.* "[A] vivid story.... Entirely through its own internal development, the novel shows the rich inner rewards of black pride, love, and independence."--Booklist, starred review
One Came Home
by Amy TimberlakeIn the town of Placid, Wisconsin, in 1871, Georgie Burkhardt is known for two things: her uncanny aim with a rifle and her habit of speaking her mind plainly.But when Georgie blurts out something she shouldn't, her older sister Agatha flees, running off with a pack of "pigeoners" trailing the passenger pigeon migration. And when the sheriff returns to town with an unidentifiable body--wearing Agatha's blue-green ball gown--everyone assumes the worst. Except Georgie. Refusing to believe the facts that are laid down (and coffined) before her, Georgie sets out on a journey to find her sister. She will track every last clue and shred of evidence to bring Agatha home. Yet even with resolute determination and her trusty Springfield single-shot, Georgie is not prepared for what she faces on the western frontier.
Newbery Honor Book